Local prosecutor earns honor as District Attorney of the Year in Alabama

By Stephanie TaylorStaff Writer

Published: Friday, June 28, 2013 at 3:30 a.m.

Last Modified: Thursday, June 27, 2013 at 11:40 p.m.

The prosecutor who represents Bibb, Hale and Perry counties has been named District Attorney of the Year.

Michael Jackson received the honor Thursday at the annual Alabama District Attorneys Association summer conference in Orange Beach.

“I feel very honored that my colleagues have picked me for this award,” he said. “I have a really good staff, and we have very good relationships with the law enforcement agencies in my circuit. That helps everything come together to get justice for victims.”

Jackson, 49, is serving his second six-year term as prosecutor for the 4th Judicial Circuit that includes Bibb, Hale, Perry, Dallas and Wilcox counties. He is the only black district attorney among the 41 judicial circuits, assistant district attorney Cynthia Bockman said, and the first black prosecutor to be elected District Attorney of the Year.

In 2012, Jackson and attorneys in his office won a capital murder case that involved the drive-by shooting of a 3-year-old victim. The office also tried and convicted a former state representative and high school principal who was charged of sexual misconduct with a student in Wilcox County.

Jackson prosecuted a case that received national attention in 2010. Defendant James Bonard Fowler accepted a plea deal and claimed responsibility for the murder that prompted the Selma to Montgomery march and ultimately the Voting Rights Act of 1965. Fowler was 77 when he pleaded guilty to killing Jimmie Lee Jackson 45 years before. The Alabama Democratic Conference recognized Jackson with a John F. Kennedy Personal Courage award earlier this year for his work in that case.

Jackson graduated from Centre College in Danville, Ky. with a double major in economics and government. He earned his law degree from Florida State College of Law.

Jackson started work for the District Attorney’s office under Roy Johnson in 1991 and opened a private practice in 1994. He was appointed Selma’s municipal judge in 1995. He serves on the boards of several statewide and community organizations. He lives with his family in Selma.

<p>The prosecutor who represents Bibb, Hale and Perry counties has been named District Attorney of the Year.</p><p>Michael Jackson received the honor Thursday at the annual Alabama District Attorneys Association summer conference in Orange Beach.</p><p>“I feel very honored that my colleagues have picked me for this award,” he said. “I have a really good staff, and we have very good relationships with the law enforcement agencies in my circuit. That helps everything come together to get justice for victims.”</p><p>Jackson, 49, is serving his second six-year term as prosecutor for the 4th Judicial Circuit that includes Bibb, Hale, Perry, Dallas and Wilcox counties. He is the only black district attorney among the 41 judicial circuits, assistant district attorney Cynthia Bockman said, and the first black prosecutor to be elected District Attorney of the Year.</p><p>In 2012, Jackson and attorneys in his office won a capital murder case that involved the drive-by shooting of a 3-year-old victim. The office also tried and convicted a former state representative and high school principal who was charged of sexual misconduct with a student in Wilcox County. </p><p>Jackson prosecuted a case that received national attention in 2010. Defendant James Bonard Fowler accepted a plea deal and claimed responsibility for the murder that prompted the Selma to Montgomery march and ultimately the Voting Rights Act of 1965. Fowler was 77 when he pleaded guilty to killing Jimmie Lee Jackson 45 years before. The Alabama Democratic Conference recognized Jackson with a John F. Kennedy Personal Courage award earlier this year for his work in that case.</p><p>Jackson graduated from Centre College in Danville, Ky. with a double major in economics and government. He earned his law degree from Florida State College of Law.</p><p>Jackson started work for the District Attorney's office under Roy Johnson in 1991 and opened a private practice in 1994. He was appointed Selma's municipal judge in 1995. He serves on the boards of several statewide and community organizations. He lives with his family in Selma.</p><p>Reach Stephanie Taylor at stephanie.taylor@tuscaloosanews.com or 205-722-0210.</p>